Crystal Viper - The Silver Key

Angry Metal Guy 80

I’ve been with Marta Gabriel and her heavy/power metal outfit, Crystal Viper, since their stellar 2012 release, Crimen Excepta. Not only is Gabriel an axe master, but her riffs and voice undoubtedly inspired similar power metal acts, like Unleash the Archers. But, Crystal Viper hasn’t been as consistent as they once were. The last few albums I’ve reviewed have ranged from disappointing to very good, including a Disappointment o’ the Year for 2019’s Tales of Fire and Ice. But, being a fan of her riffs, solos, and voice, I’m always looking to be surprised by a Crystal Viper record. Since its conception, the constant members of Crystal Viper have been Gabriel (previously Leather Wych) and guitarist, Andy Wave. Through the years, we’ve seen bassists and drummers come and go. This time, Gabriel has taken up the bass, skipping the middleman and getting right to it. But, being that our lead figure is now working with vocals, guitars, bass, keyboards, piano, and sharing songwriting duties, is this too much to hope for on The Silver Key?

On the surface, fans of the band will be pleased to know that nothing has changed between previous releases and The Silver Key. For the rest of you, continue to be posers. Gabriel doesn’t slow down and, with the help of her husband’s production skills, we continue to get dynamic releases that let the guitar harmonizations rise to the surface, allow the bass to make a presence, and smoothe the drums into the mix so they are their most-effective rhythm piece. You can also expect a tight, 40-minute record with ten, high-energy pieces that combine bangers, ballads, and soaring choruses. While you can’t expect much diversity in how the band crafts their albums, The Silver Key has a lot of surprises that completely floored me—not only on the first listen, but each one after.

The Silver Key by CRYSTAL VIPER

After a soothing, spacey instrumental, the band wastes no time grabbing you by the balls and dragging you down the pavement with “Fever of the Gods.” This thing is a banger, suggesting a band having a Hell of a fun time pounding this one out. The riffs are killer, the vocals are powerful, and the melodic leads on the back half are a nice addition. Other heavy tracks into the blistering-fast riff and drum work on “Book of the Dead” and “Escape from Yaddith.” Both have the rolling riff style that brings to mind the relentless picking styles of Iced Earth and Blind Guardian, driving the songs with unforgiving speed. The first has a marching quality, much like “The Key Is Lost,” but without the fun, old-school qualities of NWoBHM. Instead, “Book of the Dead” has some nifty sinisterness in the vocal performance with a massive chorus, slick guitar harmonization, and solo work. “Escape from Yaddith” is a unique track for its speed and the shocking harmonizing guitars that sound like something from the first two Dissection records. Yeah, you read that right. And it continues into the closing track, “Cosmic Forces Overtake.”

On the power metal side, “Heading Kadath” and the title track are some of the best. The former opens with heavy-metal harmonizations before it dives into the power style of Unleash the Archers. The harmonizing guitars are the focus of this song, moving it along with great energy and a huge chorus. That said, the best chorus on the album comes in “The Silver Key.” After opening with a power metal intro, the band wastes no time delving into this massive, singalong chorus that repeats multiple times toward the end for maximum effort. Between the builds and climbs, it centers around a mid-paced groove and some gorgeous, passionate soloing after the song’s midpoint. Even the heavily sappy, piano-based follow-up transitions the album beautifully between this song and “Escape from Yaddith.” The only ballad on the album, “Wayfaring Dreamer” is a two-person show of piano and vocals that lets Gabriel explore every range of her voice without completely drenching it in cheese.

After years of absorbing the best and worst Crystal Viper has offered, I didn’t think they had it in them to create something as great as The Silver Key. For the first time in years, I haven’t felt this excited by Gabriel and co. since the good ole days. But, the performances are tight, Gabriel’s vocals are stellar, and the flow of the record works well. For the first time in a while, songs even carry themes and riffs from one track to another, building on the momentum and moods from previous tracks—specifically in the last three songs. The band also sounds as if they enjoyed writing and performing this material. That said, I wish there was as much bass as guitar because, from what you can hear, Gabriel does a fantastic job on the instrument. Doing so would, undoubtedly, make it a bit more powerful in the mix. Regardless, The Silver Key is a powerful album with plenty of fun moments, a good mix of moods, and great performances. I’m not gonna lie, I’m happy for them, and I’m happy for myself because I’m going to be listing this baby.

Rating: 4.0/5.0
DR: 8 | Format Reviewed: 320 kb/s mp3
Label: Listenable Records | Bandcamp
Websites: linktr.ee/crystalviper | facebook.com/crystalviperofficial
Releases Worldwide: June 28th, 2024

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